Vol. XXXIV. 



SEPT. 15. J 906. 



No 18 



I FIND, Mr. Editor, that you are right, page 

 1107, about frequent cuttings killing sweet 

 clover on a lawn, for I tind that the lawn- 

 mower has killed a tuft on our lawn that 

 faithfully bloomed the fore part of the sea- 

 son. 



Smaktweed is spoken of. p. 1111, as yield- 

 ing honey at Medina. Nearly always, I 

 think, when smartweed honey is spoken of, 

 heartsease is meant. Which is it at Medina? 

 As the two things are so different, a leaf of 

 smartweed l)urning the mouth, and one of 

 heartsease being as mild as a turnip, it would 

 be well to use the term smartweed. [Smart- 

 weed hei'e — not heartsease. — Ed.] 



"1 OFTEN WI.SH the top-bar of the frames 

 were not quite so thick: for, the nearer you 

 can get the section boxes to the brood-nest, 

 the easier it is to get the bees to occupy 

 them," page 1119. Right, friend Farrar; 

 but by the side of every rose there is likely 

 to be a thorn: for, the nearer the sections to 

 the brood-nest, the easier for the bees to car- 

 ry bits of black comb from brood-nest to 

 section. 



Building upward is considered a rarity 

 by H. R. Richards, page 1120. I think you 

 can nearly always get bees to build upward 

 if you put over a strong colony a Langstroth 

 hive-body without any frames in it. If the 

 empty space be less deep, say 3 or 4 in., the 

 bees will cluster at the top and build down- 

 ward. Interesting to know just how much 

 the space must l)e before the bees begin 



Iniilding upward. It depends, of course, 

 somewhat on strength of colony. 



" Jung-klaus," in D. Imker, endorses the 

 Swiss leader, Kramer, when he says the man 

 who introduces Carniolans does untold harm 

 to himself and neighbors. For Swiss condi- 

 tions he counts the brown Swiss bee the best 

 in the world. [Apparently some of our 

 friends across the water are meeting a prol)- 

 lem similar to the one that confronts some 

 of us in this country — whether or not it 

 would be wise (to take a case in point) to 

 introduce Caucasians in a locality where 

 there were no bees but Italians. — Ed.] 



Your SURMISE about the "pendulum act " 

 of jarring bees oft" the combs, page 1108, Mr. 

 Editor, is correct. I ought to have said 

 that, when I let one end of the top-bar strike 

 upon the ground, I still hold on to the other 

 end. But, wait awhile and I'll try to send 

 you pictures of it. [I will explain to our 

 readers that I have sent Dr. Miller a special 

 camera, with instructions to photograph this 

 " pendulum act " of dislodging bees, as well 

 as several other of his kinks or tricks of the 

 trade. Dr. Miller will probably take quite a 

 numl)er of pictures, and we hope to give you 

 ere long a peep into his yard, showing him 

 and his assistants at work among the bees. 

 — Ed.] 



C. D. Farrar is after the problem of get- 

 ting outside frames filled with brood as well 

 as other frames. Commendable, but rather 

 will-o'-the-wispy in character. With Ig-inch 

 spacing, there is h inch between two brood- 

 combs: and to have the outside frame as 

 well protected as the others, there should be 

 a l)lanket of more than i in. of bees between 

 it and the side wall. When he tacks his 

 strip of section on the side of the hive his 

 blanket of bees will be only % in. thick; and 

 if he makes the space larger he will have 

 trouble with irregular building and Inilging. 

 Besides, the bees have a habit of filling the 

 outside combs mostly with pollen, and they 



